Ahead of BRICS meet, Iran blames UAE for lack of consensus; Tehran to allow more Indian vessels to pass

The sharp differences within BRICS, which India has blamed for the lack of a consensus on the West Asia situation, became public with Iran accusing the UAE of blocking a joint declaration at the foreign ministers’ meeting that India will host over the next 2 days.

As foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi arrived here for the meeting, Iranian authorities said that while Tehran wanted a joint declaration for a successful meeting under India’s chairship, there was “one neighbouring country” that was preventing a consensus by insisting on condemnation of Iran in the document.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi also said Tehran is working with friendly countries like India to facilitate safe passage for more ships through the Strait of Hormuz. He ruled out unimpeded movement of all ships in the current situation though, as he blamed the US for the blockade.

The official said Iran is working on a new mechanism for movement of ships through the Strait and that he was of the view that there could be more facilitation of safe passage for more vessels if they were willing to pay for it. Indian government sources denied that Iran has sought to charge Indian ships, adding that there is no question of India paying for it in any case.

“It’s not good to signal that BRICS is divided but we have been attacked by the US and Israel. And one neighbouring country wants to condemn Iran even though we have only defended ourselves,” said Gharibabadi, reiterating Tehran’s position that it only targeted US bases in Gulf countries from where Iran was attacked. The official, who did not name the UAE, praised India’s “impartiality” in the negotiations and said Iran would welcome peace initiatives by major powers like India.

“They want to condemn Iran but not the US and Israel. We cannot accept that,” he added, while praising India’s “impartiality” in the negotiations. Gharibabadi also said that Iran never sought any condemnation of the Arab States in the declaration under discussion and that it was even ready to take the language of condemnation out from the declaration altogether but there was still an insistence on censuring Iran.

Amid these differences, the BRICS meeting of officials on the Middle East that India hosted last month ended without a joint statement and the same fate seemingly awaits the foreign ministers’ meeting this week. Indian government sources have attributed this to a sharp difference of positions among members who are party to the conflict. India has also denied that the discord in BRICS may have anything to do with its own position on the Israel-Palestine issue, with official sources saying that as recently as January this year it reached a common position with the Arab League, including on Palestine, and has been clear in its support for a two-state solution.

Asked about the energy supply disruptions because of the Hormuz situation, Gharibabadi said Iran had adopted a different approach towards friendly countries like India. “Eleven Indian vessels have already passed through the State of Hormuz. And now we are working to facilitate the passing of some more Indian vessels in this regard due to the relations that we have with India. This is not the case for many other countries,” said the official.

“This is the current situation, but if there is an expectation that all vessels will pass the State of Hormuz, I think due to the restrictions and the situation that we have, it is not possible. We would like to cooperate with friendly countries like India to facilitate the passage of some more vessels,” he added.

Acknowledging India’s interest in the strategic Chabahar port, the official also said Iran remained committed to the project. He added cooperation would largely depend on how India pursues with the US the issue of sanctions waiver for its role in the project.